1. Marie Antoinette
The Perfect Scapegoat

2. Who Was She?
Princess of Austria, forced to marry Louis XVI of France at age 14
Marriage was supposed to heal the feud between the two nations
Became queen of France
Was very unpopular with the French people, but was isolated from them

3. What Was Marie Expected to Do?
Be a link between Austria and France – be Austrian in diplomatic issues, be French the rest of the time
Win over the hearts of the French people
Entertain the French nobility
PRODUCE AN HEIR TO THE THRONE

4. Marie and the Nobility Always had to impress the nobility
Needed to wear expensive, hand-tailored dresses and hold lavish parties
Tradition from Louis XIV
Nobility was always gossiping, if Marie offended the wrong person she would be ostracized
If Marie broke with French tradition people would think she was trashy

5. Marie and the Commoners
Marie wasn’t French, so the commoners hated her from the start
Rumors spread quickly about how she spent so much money
She never wanted any interaction with people from the 3rd estate
She couldn’t produce an heir to the throne

6. Marie and Isolation Marie rarely left the royal palaces
She had a very small group pf close friends who could not always spend time with her
Rumors about Marie caused significant depression
She spent money to feel better about herself

7. The Petit Trianon Chateau on the grounds of Versailles
Louis gave the Marie free reign to remodel the building
Marie used it as a getaway from the duties of the royal court

9. The Little Hamlet
Rustic retreat Marie had built so she could “get away from it all”
Looked like a quaint peasant village
Very expensive to build and maintain